Jail officials discover loaded gun smuggled in by inmate

OKLAHOMA CITY (WAVE) – Oklahoma County officials got a big shock when they discovered an inmate smuggled a loaded firearm into a jail.

According to NBC affiliate KFOR (http://bit.ly/14Y2faN), how he managed to smuggle it in is what has lawmen taking a second look.

Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said, "In this case, authorities said the weapon got past a body search. A pat-down will not reveal a Derringer firearm that is secreted in a body cavity."

KFOR reported authorities said because so many people were booked into jail over the weekend, Mark Gregory Valadez never went through a metal detector before being put into a jail cell with his "concealed" weapon.

Sheriff Whetsel said Valadez began bragging about the gun to other inmates and that it when things got a bit more thorough. "We had our officers go up and do a search and they found a little small Derringer with one small round inside," he said.

According to KFOR, he was originally arrested on a city violation. Now, he's charged with a felony count of possession of contraband in a penal institution.

As for the jail staff member who did not put Valadez through the metal detector, KFOR reported authorities are checking surveillance video to find the employee and deal with him or her accordingly as it is a violation of jail policy.